A story that unites the two shores of the Adriatic

A comment by ARTUR NURA

Confindustria Albania's tenth anniversary represents much more than an association milestone. It's an opportunity to reflect on a story made of entrepreneurial courage, strategic vision, and friendship between two peoples who, over the last thirty-five years, have built one of the most significant economic and human relationships in the Adriatic region.

When talking about relations between Italy and Albania, there's a tendency to focus on economic data, investments, or trade. Yet, the true strength of this relationship lies with the people. Before institutions, before bilateral agreements and cooperation strategies, it was men and women, entrepreneurs and workers, who built a tangible bridge between the two shores of the sea.

It all began in the early nineties. Albania was emerging from one of the most complex periods in its contemporary history and opening up to the world after decades of isolation. In that context, characterized by great challenges but also immense opportunities, some Italian entrepreneurs had the courage to look beyond the difficulties of the moment. They chose to invest in Albania when many of the conditions we consider normal today were still lacking: modern infrastructure, a consolidated regulatory framework, mature economic institutions.

Those entrepreneurs were pioneers. They didn't just bring capital. They brought expertise, technologies, organizational models, and an industrial culture that contributed to the transformation of the Albanian economy. Many of them faced significant risks, but they were driven by the conviction that Albania possessed great growth potential and that the relationship with Italy could become a decisive factor for its development.

In the following years, the number of Italian companies present in the country steadily increased. The manufacturing, textile, footwear, construction, energy, services, agriculture, and tourism sectors became areas of increasingly intense collaboration. Alongside the companies came managers, technicians, professionals, and families who contributed to creating a true Italo-Albanian economic community.

As time went by, the awareness grew that this entrepreneurial presence needed to be represented and organized in a more structured way. Individual initiatives were no longer enough. It was necessary to build a common home capable of giving voice to businesses, fostering dialogue with institutions, and promoting a shared vision of economic development.

From this need, Confindustria Albania was born in June 2016.

Its establishment marked a historic moment in the economic relations between the two countries. For the first time, Italian companies present in Albania equipped themselves with an organization inspired by the Confindustria model, capable of representing their interests and promoting an increasingly qualified and responsible presence in the country.

The birth of Confindustria Albania was the result of a collective effort involving entrepreneurs, territorial associations of Confindustria, and numerous institutional supporters from both Italy and Albania. Among the figures who contributed to the realization of this project, the role played by Donato D’Agostino, the organization’s first president, and by all those who believed in the necessity of creating a stable and recognized representation of the Italian business system in Albania, should be remembered.

Over the years, Confindustria Albania has grown to become one of the most important business associations in the country. From an initial group of twenty-three founding companies, a network has developed that today represents a much larger number of businesses operating in the main sectors of the Albanian economy.

However, its importance cannot be measured solely by the number of members.

Confindustria Albania has become a benchmark for dialogue between the business world and institutions. On one hand, it represents the interests and needs of Italian companies present in the country; on the other, it contributes to building a climate favorable to investment, economic growth, and bilateral cooperation.

Over the past ten years, the association has played a fundamental role in consolidating the relationship between the private sector and the Albanian government, fostering dialogue on strategic issues such as competitiveness, vocational training, innovation, energy, sustainability, and European integration.

At the same time, Confindustria Albania has become a privileged interlocutor for Italian institutions, particularly the Italian Embassy in Tirana, which has always supported the strengthening of economic relations between the two countries. This relationship has made it possible to address the challenges of the international context together and to leverage the opportunities offered by a constantly evolving market.

The significance of the tenth anniversary was underscored by the presence of important representatives from Albanian and Italian institutions. The participation of Albania's Deputy Prime Minister, Albana Kociu, Italy's Ambassador to Tirana, Marco Alberto, and the President of the Parliamentary Commission for Economy and Production, Milva Ikonomi, confirmed the strategic value that Confindustria Albania has assumed over the years.

Particularly significant was the recognition given to Milva Ekonomi, a former minister and today one of the country's most authoritative institutional figures, described by many as the “godmother” of this experience. A moniker that arises not only from her support for Italian entrepreneurial initiatives but from her constant attention to the development of economic relations between Italy and Albania. Her closeness to the productive world and her ability to understand the needs of businesses have contributed to creating a climate of mutual trust that has fostered investments and collaborations.

In this sense, the story of Confindustria Albania is also a political story in the noblest sense of the word. Not partisan politics, but politics as the building of the common good, as the ability to create connections between different interests and transform them into opportunities for shared growth.

Economic relations between Italy and Albania represent one of the most successful cases in the Mediterranean area today. Italy continues to be Albania's main trading partner and one of the most important foreign investors in the country. Thousands of Albanian workers are employed by Italian companies operating on Italian soil, while hundreds of thousands of Albanian citizens residing in Italy form a further human, cultural, and economic bridge between the two nations.

In this context, Confindustria Albania has managed to interpret a role that goes beyond simple association representation. It has become a community of people, experiences, and values. A platform through which Italian and Albanian entrepreneurs can interact, collaborate, and contribute together to the development of their respective countries.

The tenth anniversary therefore offers an opportunity to look back with gratitude and to the future with confidence.

Gratitude towards those pioneers who, starting in 1991, believed in Albania when few were ready to do so. Towards the entrepreneurs who invested resources, energy, and expertise to build companies, create employment, and generate development. Towards the institutions that accompanied this journey with responsibility and foresight.

Confidence because the challenges of the future will require even closer collaboration between Italy and Albania. The energy transition, digitalization, technological innovation, the training of new generations, and Albania's European path represent areas in which the contribution of businesses will be decisive.

If the first thirty-five years of modern economic relations between the two countries were characterized by the courage of pioneers, the coming decades will likely be defined by the ability to build together an increasingly innovative, sustainable, and inclusive development model.

For this reason, the tenth anniversary of Confindustria Albania should not be considered a destination. It is rather a new beginning. A beginning founded on the awareness that the real wealth built over these years is not represented solely by investments, balance sheets, or commercial exchanges, but by the mutual trust that has been consolidated between two friendly peoples.

A trust born from the initiative of individual entrepreneurs and transformed, over time, into an authoritative and recognized institution. A trust that today is called Confindustria Albania. And which continues to represent one of the most concrete, solid, and promising expressions of friendship between Italy and Albania.

Telegraphic History of the Presidents of Confindustria Albania

2016–2017

Donato D'Agostino

Guide the constitutive phase of the association.
The presidency is initially held by Confindustria Bari-BAT until the first general assembly.
Main Objective: To create a stable representation of Italian businesses in Albania.
2017–2025

Sergio Fontana

Puglia-based pharmaceutical entrepreneur (Farmalabor).
Elected in March 2017 and subsequently reconfirmed.
During his tenure, the association grew to around 170-200 member companies and over 15,000 employees represented.
Strengthen dialogue with Albanian institutions and consolidate the role of Confindustria Albania within the Confindustria system of Southeast Europe.
2025–present

Davide Rogai

ICT entrepreneur originally from Florence.
Founding member of the association in 2016 and board member since its inception.
Elected president on March 27, 2025.
You indicated as a priority the territorial expansion of the association beyond Tirana and the strengthening of the sectoral sections (ICT, energy, infrastructure, services, etc.).

This article by ARTUR NURA was published on TIRANADIPLOMAT.COM

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